Rocket Ship Blues

Review: "BLADE RUNNER" (1982)

2011-07-15T16:35:00.000-07:00

I was recently discussing the classic science fiction film "Blade Runner" with a friend. And since I had typed up some of my thoughts on the film, I came up with a cunning plan to make those thoughts work double-time and put them into a blog post. Before I start, I just want to say that this is a very spoiler-y review. This post is for those of you who watched it and left wondering if you missed something. If you haven't seen it yet, DON'T READ ANY FURTHER. Get thee to a blu-ray player right now. And please do not watch the repugnant theatrical version with the voice overs by Harrison Ford and a "happily ever after" ending. That is not the right way to see it. Speaking of which, I wouldn't recommend watching this film during the day with popcorn and candy bars. The best viewing experience would be at night. With the lights off. With a refrigerated box of Chinese takeout. And a can of Coca-Cola.

Anyway.

So we're shown a bleak future. I wouldn't say 'dystopian' because in pop culture that implies that there is a malevolent government or an overarching lie to a repressed society that tells them that their situation is actually ideal. There is no such lie in Blade Runner. The inhabitants of 2019 Los Angeles all seem to know their life is miserable, and the only thing perhaps 'deceiving' them are advertisement billboards. But 'dystopia' in Greek basically means "bad place" so technically the world of Blade Runner fits the bill.

This bleak future is beautifully photographed by Jordan Cronenweth, using deep, dark shadows and blinding, flaring light in stark contrast. The visual palette brings about a whole new definition of the word "Neo-noir" - inspired of course by the film noirs of the 1940s, and in turn inspiring countless other science fiction films after this to be shot in a similar manner. The images are complimented perfectly by the sonorous synthetic dulcet tones of Vangelis - there's really no other soundtrack quite like it.

We meet Rick Deckard, a 'blade runner' - which means he hunts down rogue replicants (androids) that look perfectly human, and 'retires' them. He seems to hate his bosses, and he keeps dreaming of a unicorn. Weird, but more on that later. After testing Rachel, a replicant that thinks she is a human (she's even had memories implanted to convince her she had a childhood), things start to get complicated. Rachel asks the tough questions - "Have you ever retired a human by mistake?" and "Have you ever run the empathy test on yourself?" bringing about an interesting point - Deckard is cold, calculating, emotionless for the entire film, whereas Rachel the replicant cries and shows various other emotions. Rachel plays the piano beautifully, and all Deckard can do is give us the coldest, most emotionally void make-out scene in movie history. As we are shown the other replicants Deckard is hunting for, this contrast becomes even more apparent. The humans in this story seem to be less alive than the robots.

The scene in Tyrell's (the creator of the replicants) home, at first glance seems to emphasize a deist worldview (a creator god who has cruelly left the world to itself). But I don't think that this is the parallel to draw here. Instead, it seems to illuminate the horror of having a creator who ISN'T divine - or eternal in any way. Having a human creator means Roy Batty's pleas fall on powerless, if not deaf, ears. The proof his creator is flawed? Simple. Roy crushes him to death. Their creator is dead. Mortal. For these creations, this existence is a tragic one.

As Deckard's hunt for Roy Batty and Pris turns into him running for his life, Roy points out that Deckard is being both irrational AND unsportsmanlike. Our protagonist is shown in multiple ways to be imperfect. Fallen. Mired in human nature. Again, the replicants seem to be better off without many of the flaws that are inherent in humans. The replicants are mostly shown to be vicious, and often crazed killers. But once Deckard stops hunting Roy, once he's hanging for his life, and about to fall to his death, Roy reaches down and saves him - delivering a soliloquy about the things he's seen.

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time... like tears in rain... Time to die."

Gaff, the policeman who realizes Deckard has fallen in love with Rachel, says at the end, "It's too bad she won't live! But then again, who does?" Mortality is something both human and replicant must grapple with. Then, at the very end, he leaves an intricate origami message behind - a unicorn. Is it possible that Deckard's dream of the unicorn that we saw earlier was implanted, just like Rachel's childhood memories? Could Deckard himself be a replicant?

What does it mean to be human? We all have to deal with our own self-perception at one point or another. And since none of us remember the moment of our birth, there is no way of being absolutely certain where we came from, or who created us. We all have to take whatever answers we arrive at on faith. So the question is, are you robotically going through the motions, or are you living? Are you going through life with vitality? A sense of wonder at beauty - at things like C-beams glittering in the dark near the Tannhauser gate? Do you care for people? Do you love? I have to say, since 1968 when the original story was written, these questions have only become more and more relevant.

A Man, a Plan, and a Red Hunting Hat: THE CATCHER IN THE RYE

2011-07-01T19:53:00.001-07:00

"If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don’t feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth."

Everyone knows growing up sucks. Even though it can be fleetingly enjoyable at times, there is an inevitability to the pain that comes with it. And "The Catcher in the Rye" stands as a testament to that.

The first thing you notice when you read J.D. Salinger's most celebrated novel is the prose. The narrator, Holden Caulfield, is telling you a story about himself and he's not going to dress it up for you. You get the feeling he's someone who knows the state of the world, and he's going to shoot straight with you. But it soon becomes apparent that you are not seeing the world as it is, rather through the lens of our lovable misanthropic friend. Holden has gone from prep school to prep school, and now he's flunking four of his five subjects - and has just been given the boot out of Pencey. But as subjective as the narrator is, the way he describes the world around him is, in a sense, very real. He wanders off on rabbit trails, he leaves out what he wants to, and he interprets everything the way he sees it. It's not purposefully deceptive - it's just Holden Caulfield, unfiltered. Anyway. I'm not going to call this a review, that would be too phony to assume that I am now an authority on the book. But to sum up some of my thoughts, I've titled this piece, "A Man, a Plan, and a Red Hunting Hat."

A Man. Holden is in the transition stage between childhood and adulthood. And it sucks. Everything about the adult world is phony, and he doesn't want to be a part of it. But he can't keep himself from growing up, in fact in many ways he already is an adult. His encounter with his younger sister Phoebe towards the end shows us that. The irony is that he is becoming (and already is) many of the things he hates about the adult world.

A Plan - or, yet again, the lack of one. Like Dustin Hoffman's character in The Graduate, Holden is disillusioned with the 'road to success' and even though the adults in the story give him sound advice to succeeding into adulthood, they are all sacrifices of integrity - that phoniness he hates so much. He knows the path to adulthood corrupts his innocence. But ironically, it's apparent that he's already been 'corrupted'.

The Red Hunting Hat is an awesome visual in this story. He keeps taking it on and off. He's proud of it, he lets it define him, yet he won't let people see him wearing it. It's just like the ways we grow up into our own identity - yet in doing so, people around you will find it strange - they may even scoff if your identity does not match with theirs. Then we become both simultaneously proud and embarrassed of our own unique identity - and yet that's what an identity should be; unique.

The title of the book is taken from a song - to Holden, these words sum up what he wants to be - someone who can save innocent children from the peril of adulthood. Something it seems apparent that he has already lost. But Holden finds out that the song isn't actually about a "Catcher in the Rye". If you look into the song's meaning, ironically it's about willingly losing one's innocence and purity - just the thing that Holden shuns. In the end, the story of Holden Caulfield is ultimately a tragedy - much like Don Quixote - a lost soul in a lost world, dreaming an impossible dream and fighting an unbeatable foe. Everyone has to grow up eventually, and what Holden really lacks is maturity.

"Pretend that you owe me nothing
and all the world is green.
We can bring back the old days again
when all the world is green."
~ Tom Waits

The Silver Chair

2011-05-15T09:34:00.000-07:00

"Are you not thirsty?" said the Lion.
"I'm dying of thirst," said Jill.
"Then drink," said the Lion.
"May I--could I--would you mind going away while I do?" said Jill.
The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl. And as Jill gazed at its motionless bulk, she realized that she might as well have asked the whole mountain to move aside for her convenience.

It was a rather dull day, and for almost no reason at all, I found myself picking up The Silver Chair, by C.S. Lewis. It's the fourth book in the Narnia series, and ever since my mother read them to me as a child, it's been my favorite of the seven. The reason why is rather elusive, and I've never been able to explain it fully. Something just clicked about everything inside of its covers, and I savored every word, even more so than the others (which are all also excellent books).

So as I opened the pages again, for the first time in over ten years, the feelings I had when I first heard it came washing back over me. And what surprised me was just how well I remembered it. I could still see the images my mind's eye conjured when I was young, and the characters are just as real and vivid as they were before. I could even remember where I was when I first had it read to me.

Nostalgia aside, the first thing that strikes you about Lewis' work is the simple beauty of his prose. Every word feels perfectly chosen and placed. This man knew what he was doing. As the words roll off your tongue you realize with what great inefficiency and inadequacy that you normally speak. Of course, if we took the time to perfectly form our sentences to say what we will with beauty and elegance, we'd rarely say anything at all. Maybe that, too, would be an improvement?

"Will you promise not to--do anything to me, if I do come?" said Jill.
"I make no promise," said the Lion.
Jill was so thirsty now that, without noticing it, she had come a step nearer.
"Do you eat girls? she said.
"I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms," said the Lion. It didn't say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it.
"I daren't come and drink," said Jill.
"Then you will die of thirst," said the Lion.
"Oh dear," said Jill, taking another step nearer. "I suppose I must go look for another stream then."
"There is no other stream," said the Lion.

This particular scene always stood out to me, and the way Aslan is introduced to Jill Pole (or rather, the other way around) is particularly iconic. I remember feeling that rush of fear that Jill was feeling, even though I knew who he was from the previous books.

This is something that the movie versions have NEVER gotten right, is the way Aslan's sheer power instills terror in the hearts of those who behold him. Instead, the movies turn him into a soft, lovable lion that you just want to be friends with. This is NOT the Aslan in the books. In one of my favorite lines from The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (conveniently cut from the film), Mr. Beaver says, "Safe? Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you."

Anyway. Soap box aside, we now come to the Task that Aslan gives to Jill, which is how we know that we are in for an adventure:

"And now hear your task. Far from here in the land of Narnia there lives an aged king who is sad because he has no prince of his blood to be king after him. He has no heir because his only son was stolen from him many years ago, and no one in Narnia knows where that prince went or whether he is still alive. But he is. I lay on you this command, that you seek this prince until either you have found him and brought him to his father's house, or else died in the attempt, or else gone back to your own world."
"How, please?" said Jill.
"I will tell you, child," said the Lion. "These are the signs by which I will guide you in your quest. First; as soon as the boy Eustace sets foot in Narnia, he will meet an old and dear friend. He must greet that friend at once; if he does, you will both have good help. Second; you must journey out of Narnia to the north till you come to the ruined city of the ancient giants. Third; you shall find a writing on a stone in that ruined city, and you must do what the writing tells you. Fourth; you will know the lost prince (if you find him) by this, that he will be the first person you have met in your travels who will ask you to do something in my name, in the name of Aslan."

There it is, pretty much the entire story laid out for us right there in the second chapter. The quest is quite clearly presented, and now the audience knows what they are in for. Now all the reader must do is sit back and watch the plan go completely and horribly wrong. It wouldn't be a story, otherwise!

I'm not going to go into the rest of the book here, I don't have the time for that, but I wanted to share these little snippets with you, A) if you have read the book already, then to remind you of how good it is, or B) if you haven't read the book yet, to encourage you to do so. If you don't get it, read it to a kid, they certainly will.

But I have a feeling that these books work for all ages. Sure, they were written as children's stories, but they carry that kind of maturity that kids have that adults seem to think kids aren't capable of understanding. I first had these books read to me when I was 7, and they not only made perfect sense to me, they stuck with me and were a big influence on the way I grew up. I would recommend them for any child of any age. Even the grown-up ones.

Review: "Thor" (2011)

2011-05-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

Ever since Marvel Studios has been tying together it's movie franchise in Iron Man, I've been intrigued. Sure, sometimes it felt like overkill, like in Iron Man 2, but the idea of continuing plot threads between their different superhero movies beefs up their continuity in a unique way and allows them to build a world that's much larger than any one superhero, much like their comics. This is a brilliant move on their part. But when I first heard about doing a Thor movie, I must admit I was skeptical. I've never seen the comics of Thor, and the idea of a superhero who was the Norse god of thunder seemed more than a little silly. I mean, he wears a big cape and throws a hammer that flies back to him like a boomerang? You've got to be kidding, right, Marvel?

The first trailer didn't ease my many doubts - there he was, a big beefy guy in a silly-looking cape and armor running around doing over-the-top things. The one thing that kept my hopes up was the fact that it was directed by Kenneth Branagh, who is a tried and true force to be reckoned with, based on the films I've seen of his. The style visible in the trailers seemed operatic, which had potential to be unique, if pulled off well. All in all, I went into the theater on my guard, and ready to be disappointed.

The film starts off on Earth, and you meet Natalie Portman's character, Jane Foster. She's studying atmospheric conditions in an RV that's been pimped out for science. Suddenly, what appears to be an Einstein-Rosen Bridge (a wormhole) opens up in the sky, and before they know it, they've run over an alien with their RV. Then things get crazy, and we get a history (narrated by the sonorous Anthony Hopkins) about a race of aliens that have protected Earth in the past, who were so powerful that the Norsemen saw them as gods. We are suddenly transported to the realm of Asgard - and its impressive how the visual effects have captured this place - and like my favorite alien worlds in science fiction, you get a sense of culture just from the city and the buildings, the sculptures and the art that this society has crafted. We fly into the pipe-organ shaped castle and get introduced to Odin and his sons - an introduction that promises family issues of Shakespearean proportion.

From here on out, my doubts are gone. The execution is pitch-perfect: grounded verisimilitude, epic visuals, high drama, and even humor are all woven into this story in a natural way that allows you to immerse yourself in this world. By the end of the film, you get off the roller coaster never having felt cheated or jerked around too much. Kenneth Branagh does not let you down.

The film isn't flawless, admittedly there are a few issues I have here and there. First of all, by nature of the main character's name itself, we run into the problem of godlike powers. You're never really sure what Thor can or can't do when he's in control of all his powers. His magic hammer flies, spins, and dances through bad guys, and so the problem is that it's hard to know if he's ever in real danger. Fortunately, he spends the majority of the film without his powers, so this doesn't stay a problem for long. And even when he's super-Thor, there's still enough there to keep you interested and connected. But like Superman, the danger is there, and can be a problem if not kept in check.

Darcy, Jane's friend is mostly there for exposition and (semi-effective) comic relief, and is probably the weakest link in the film. Fortunately, she's never given too much screen time, and she does offer a bit of perspective to the film of the 'normal person' so not all is lost. Thor's epic friends are not painted very deeply, but they are so much fun to watch you forget that quickly. They are loyal to Thor, they've got style, and they want to help him, and that's enough to make you root for them.

I rather liked the way they dealt with S.H.I.E.L.D in this film. Unlike Iron Man 2, they feel organic to the story, and I enjoy watching Phil Coulson smirk as he sees through the fake I.D. but lets the heroes do their thing anyways. Marvel universe is proving to be one to watch, and I must say, I'm looking forward to Captain America this summer, and I cannot wait for Joss Whedon's Avengers film next year.

Jane Foster (the love interest) is a good character, but still feels less developed than one might have liked. But she still has plenty of good moments. The thing to remember is that this story is not about her, it's about Thor. It's hard to remember this, because Natalie Portman does a great job at playing a scientist faced with the injustice of getting her work confiscated. It's easy to feel sorry for her, and almost forget that this movie is about Thor, so don't get distracted! But even despite the small weaknesses here and there, the movie as a whole is still a solidly crafted piece of entertainment. For as over-the-top as it is, each moment is still plumbed for appropriate emotional weight and human connection. The characters do not become cartoons, even when being animated by visual effects artists.

All in all, "Thor" is a solid superhero film, and even with a concept as ridiculous as Thor, Kenneth Branagh does it the right way. If you haven't seen any other of his films, I would highly recommend checking them out, they are well worth your time. Hamlet and Henry V especially.

At the beginning of the film, even though Thor is fully grown and looks more manly than Chuck Norris, the thing to note is that at heart, he is still a boy. This is a story about a fool who becomes wise, a prideful warrior who learns what it means to care about something other than war. He must face losing his power, losing his friends, betrayal within his family, and falling in love, but when he comes out on the other side, he has become a man.

Review: "The Dark Crystal" (1982)

2011-04-18T09:18:00.000-07:00

When it comes to film and entertainment, Jim Henson and Frank Oz are two of my favoritest people on this earth. And before you tell me that 'favoritest' isn't a word, I shall just inform you that neither was "Muppet" before Jim and Frank came around. But their combined contributions (The Muppet Show, the character of Yoda, Death at a Funeral {2007}, the several Muppet movies, The Storyteller... etc, etc.) are a veritable smorgasbord of delight and goodness. So the idea of a dark fantastical myth from them, made entirely with puppets, automatically screams of genius.

And as the film starts, the experience does not disappoint. You are told the story of this world, and the myth unfolds from there. There are the dark and evil Skeksis, the banished yet wise Mystics, and the endangered Gelfling that has a bigger fate that he realizes. This is a short film (90 mins), but the scope is built on epic proportions.

You are soon entranced by the evocative visuals - Henson's and Oz' use of color and scale are unparalleled, and they pull off shots with elegance and texture that we could only dream of seeing in movies these days. The dialogue is mostly on-the-nose and even laughably cheesy at times, but it's easy to overlook because the world is so tactile, the visuals so sophisticated, that you can just swim in it for hours and never want to leave. The music and sound design, when combined, have a profound effect. The puppets (of which there are hundreds), even though you KNOW they are puppets, have a startling life to them that no CGI has ever been able to capture since, and it really is a paramount of beauty to behold. As a warning, however, I'll caution that many sequences in this film are creepy, intense, and the evil depicted is rather disturbing, and I would advise against showing this film to children.

The story continues in excellent mythic fashion, and many scenes seem to feel familiar, as if they were taken from Lord of the Rings, Return of the Jedi, or Harry Potter. But then you realize that this movie came out in 1982, before any of those films came out, and all you can do is be amazed at how influential this little film was on our concept of modern fantasy. The use of color in the film alone is unsurpassed, yet mimicked and echoed in films everywhere today.

The climax reaches an apex as the final confrontation between good and evil comes to a head. And thematically so far the film has been awesome - ideas of life, death, and rebirth - tied to the connectivity of nature, and best of all, a clear division of good and evil, which is refreshing amidst the slew of 'gray area' films these days. And to elaborate, the awesome thing here is that the Skeksis are truly portrayed as PURE evil. It's their very essence to be violent, gluttonous, vile, and deceptive. We're talking about proper good and evil. This is not just popcorn entertainment. This is a thinking movie, that engages you with philosophical ideas. But unfortunately, there is one, huge, major flaw. And I am sorry to say, that in order to hear more, you are going to have to embark into the SPOILER section of this review.

SPOILERS BELOW! If you have not seen this film, please read no further. Or, rather, please do, but only if you don't mind hearing the ending.

Okay. Where was I? Oh yes, the climactic battle of good and evil. How refreshing... until it is revealed that the way the conflict gets resolved is by "the good" (Mystics) COMBINING WITH "the evil" (Skeksis) to become one creature! Hold the phone. Yes, you heard me. Combining. Good merges with Evil, and THAT'S the resolution to the conflict. They mutter something about splitting and past mistakes, and then 'transcend into the ether' and we are supposed to shout "hooray" and be happy? This is where the whole thing devolves into a load of Hippie bull crap. There's nothing more hollow than saying that the solution to the conflict of good and evil is for them to become the same thing. This is exactly the 'gray area' nonsense that we all thought this film was avoiding in the first place.
Am I just asserting my own world view and being closed-minded? Well if we can't agree that pure evil is evil, and ought to be crushed, then what can we do? If we truly believed that, our laws, culture, and entire world would be thrown to the wind. It saddens me to see this film take this turn, because it was doing so swell up to this point. It did everything right until it did everything wrong. And to see this coming from Henson and Oz makes me even sadder.
The trouble is, no matter how well a film is executed, if it's core is rotten, it really stinks up the whole experience. So the film is a very mixed bag for me. I can enjoy the parts that are beautifully artistic, and appreciate the sheer craftsmanship that went into this film, but when I am reminded of the ending, I cannot leave without a bad taste in my mouth.

The fact is, some films are trash to begin with, and it's no surprise that they fail to reason out an idea to a good conclusion, or fail to illuminate some truth or even merely resolve a conflict the right way. But with other films, and I am talking specifically about The Dark Crystal here, it is very sad to see such beautiful art get squandered on a poor ending. It really is tragic. That said, I still really, really love the other 85 minutes of the movie. And I always will.

Review: "Hanna" (2011)

2011-04-09T11:24:00.000-07:00

"Hanna" just came out in theaters. Directed by Joe Wright (Atonement), it is an action thriller about how much it sucks to be created to be a killing machine. Hanna (Saoirse Ronan) is literally that - a genetically altered human machine, brought up and trained by her father (Eric Bana) for one purpose - to kill a CIA agent named Marissa Viegler. From the snow-covered house in the forest where Hanna is raised to the Big Bad Wolf parallels, fairy-tale imagery is everywhere.

"You're dead." says her father, who has snuck up on Hanna while she is gutting a deer. "I've killed you." With a feral scream, Hanna attacks her father, just as he's trained her to do. We immediately see that her life has been nothing but training, training, and training. Yet there's no sadness for the 'normal' life she could have had - because she's never known anything else. Finally, as her father instructs, she presses a button on a radio transmitter that will tell Marissa where she is - She's ready.

What unfolds from there is a terrifying display of what Hanna is capable of - she quickly and brutally destroys security guards 3 times her size, and escapes from a secure CIA facility as if she were swatting a fly. But the film really starts to get interesting when Hanna happens upon a British tourist family - and with some surprising moments of levity, gets her first exposure to 'the real world.'

There's a lot more to this film than meets the eye at first glance. It's a very well shot action film, and an intense emotional mood piece. It's a tone poem of violence but also a fairy-tale inspired journey - a quest for freedom. Marissa turns into the wicked witch or the evil stepmother and her hired hand becomes the Big Bad Wolf - and you realized that Hanna is not going to get this freedom until the wicked witch is dead.

I would be doing a disservice if I were not to mention the Chemical Brothers' musical contribution here. Eerie and bleak at times, pulsing and intensely rhythmic at others - yet beautiful at the moments of wonder and joy as hanna learns about the world - of simple humanity, of music, and of friendship. It sounds unlike any soundtrack you've heard before.

From what I've read, director Joe Wright wanted to deconstruct the idea of young girls in action heroine roles - so he created a film that isn't exploitative and isn't 'sexy' and instead went for the character story. It's violent, it's intense, but it never becomes vulgar or mindless. It's not created for kids, and if you have a weak stomach, you may not want to subject yourself to this experience. But it is not sensationalized and the characters are true, and they are explored for their humanity. The result is rather beautiful.

SPOILERS BELOW! If you have not seen this film, please read no further.

I feel like I must add this, because I was off-put by it at first, and I'd like to offer what I've gleaned from thinking on it.

At first I was surprised at the final shot of the film - and the oddness of the smash-cut to the title, once again. The first obvious thing that you think of is the call-back to the opening title, when Hanna kills the deer. You could take that to mean that the hunter (Marissa) has become the hunted. It's a shocking sensation to see, but that's actually a good thing - the sight of a young girl killing without emotion ALWAYS SHOULD BE shocking to us. That means the film is doing a good job.

But back to the odd title placement. If you think about it, that title only appears in two places - both of them at the immediate point of death as Hanna kills her target. The gunshot and the projection of her name over blood red background creates an interesting connection - killing IS her identity. She was created to be a killing machine, and even her final act, an act that will essentially give her her freedom, is an act of murder. But it's not sensationalized, not glorified. It is not only done out of self-preservation, it's done with empathy. "I just missed your heart." She says, and politely puts an end to the suffering of her victim.

You know, for comedy.

2011-04-05T11:52:00.000-07:00

I am proud to announce that 'Best Laid Plans', the improvised sitcom that I've been working on over the course of the last year or so, is now available for viewing on Hulu. We are right up there with all the other shows, it feels so official!

Check it out here.

Sketches

2011-03-12T18:08:00.001-08:00

Here are a handful of sketches that I've been doing as concept art for the next show I'm working on.

Tragedy and Comedy

2011-02-21T19:03:00.000-08:00

"Tragedy is an imitation of an action that is admirable, complete and possesses magnitude; ...performed by actors, not through narration; effecting through pity and fear the purification of such emotions."

"Comedy is an imitation of inferior people - not, however, with respect to every kind of defect: the laughable is a species of what is disgraceful. The laughable is an error or disgrace that does not involve pain or destruction; for example, a comic mask is ugly and distorted, but does not involve pain."

- Aristotle, Poetics

Send in the Clowns

2011-02-14T11:47:00.000-08:00

My friends Nathan and Michelle got me a present for my birthday, and I took a photo of it to give you a clear idea of the humor of the gift.

And yes. It is a one-handed wind-up clown in a box that plays an eerie rendition of 'Send in the Clowns'. First of all, I want to say, if you are deathly afraid of clowns, and have just suffered a heart attack, I am most dreadfully sorry. And yes. This is by far the creepiest birthday present I have ever received. But on the other hand, there's something rather nostalgic about the way this doll is crafted, a harkening back to a time gone by.

And then the unthinkable happened: The song got stuck in my head. I couldn't stop thinking about it. I looked it up, and found that it is actually an extremely sad song. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEQrZzjXbnE

Isn't it rich?
Are we a pair?
Me here at last on the ground,
You in mid-air.
Send in the clowns.

The song was written by Stephen Sondheim, for a musical called 'A Little Night Music'. It was adapted from an Ingmar Bergman film called 'Smiles of a Summer Night'. The song is about a woman, Desirée, who reflects on the ironies and disappointments in her life, primarily with regard to a man she had an affair with, which subsequently ruined his life. The woman he is with now is not good for him, yet he nobly presses on.

"The Clowns" are of course not actually referring to circus clowns. It is a reference to a practice in theater, where if things weren't going well, they would send in the 'clowns', or fools, to tell jokes and salvage the play. But there's a second meaning, in which Desirée knows that she's been foolish and is sorry for what she's done.

Don't you love farce?
My fault I fear.
I thought that you'd want what I want.
Sorry, my dear.
But where are the clowns?
Quick, send in the clowns.
Don't bother, they're here.

Sometimes we look back and see things that could have been better, had we only had the wisdom to do it the right way the first time. "Fools rush in" as they say. I think that's why our culture is enamored with the science fiction concept of time travel. We regret things in our past, and we wish we could change them. We're flawed, that's part of our human nature. We screw things up. That's what we do.

Send in the clowns.

Advice to Writers: Finding Your Voice

2011-02-13T13:39:00.000-08:00

"You ask how a writer finds their voice. Now that's a question! Everyone has a voice, in life and in print, but finding it in print takes time. There's no technique to finding it... Yes, imitate like hell. Everyone does. Gaining a voice, whatever that is, comes with experience and practice - and the writing, again, is indivisible from the person. I never - never - just sit here, thinking, what's my voice? You might as well ponder, who am I? It is, in fact, the very same thing. You can wonder your whole life and never get an answer to that.

"So the voice exists simply because you exist. You find your voice by writing. By experience. It doesn't matter what exactly you're writing, just that you are writing. Then one day someone will say, 'You've really found your voice with that piece', and you'll think, eh? Really?

"Everyone should find their own way to write. You must. Thing is, copying isn't just copying, it's selecting. It's not just a dumb process. You can be aware of the fact, yes, but what you're not so consciously aware of is the stuff that you're choosing not to use. If you happen to like my one-line-pause technique, you'll know you lifted it off me. At the same time, you'll have discarded techniques from my scripts that you don't like. That's not merely copying, but selecting, editing, and adapting. It's a good, intelligent process of choosing, not imitating. So grab it all. From anyone. Read scripts, lots of them.

"If you're thinking of writing your first script, well I know what it's like. It's so easy to put off. Maybe you just don't write until you're ready, but I worry that's too easy an excuse, because then you could spend your whole life being not-quite-ready. You've got to start. The kids writing Skins are in their teens and early twenties! There's no time to waste! The whole world is full of unwritten scripts. Don't be stifled or strangled."

- Russell T. Davies

New Things and Neo-Newness

2011-02-12T11:55:00.000-08:00

What? Is this a new blog design? What for? What is that about? Why now? Who are you? Who am I? What is existence? One of these questions will be answered by the end of this blog post. Maybe.

So what's with 'Rocket Ship Blues'? Well, mostly, I just like the way the words work together. First of all...

I like rockets. Specifically, the rockets of classic science fiction. When elegance or imagination overruled functionality or realism. Or like Jules Verne, when they didn't fully understand the concept of outer space.

Then: the blues. Perhaps the musical style to best sum up the human condition. I mean, let's face it. Life is full of suffering and sadness. But it's also filled with energy and beauty. And the blues knows that like no other. The words are melancholy, sometimes angry but the music is melodic and upbeat. It's not just about being emo. It's about expressing yourself with style. As the old adage goes, you can't SING the blues, you gotta HAVE the blues.

You stick those words together, and I dunno. I kinda like the result.

Why the change? I opened my internets this morning and my website told me I could. Does this mean I'll be returning to the art of blogging and posting regularly? Am I finally going to crawl out of my safe place of silence and spill my heart to the world? I make no promises. But I feel that writing is about sharing. People sharing thoughts and ideas with each other, and learning and discovering together, as we travel our weary road called life. It's good to write. And my mother always taught me to share.

Romantic facts of musketeers
Foundationed deep, somehow
Ah, but I was so much older then
I’m younger than that now
- Bob Dylan

Thoughts on writing from a great Writer

2010-04-30T08:45:00.000-07:00

Russell T Davies, when asked about how he writes the different companions on Doctor Who:

"That's tricky. I don't type 'DONNA' and then think, now, how would she say this...? The fact that I've typed 'DONNA' means that she already has something to say. You can worry too much about speech patterns, about imposing different styles on the words, one for Rose, one for Donna, one for Martha, one for Sarah Jane. They're all women, on the side of good, in a sci-fi world, so their speeches aren't going to be radically different. It's not so much what they say, as why they say it and when.

"But I suppose there's a basic characteristic that I bear in mind. An essence. Rose is open, honest, heartfelt, to the point of being selfish, wonderfully selfish. Martha is clever, calm, but rarely says what she's really thinking. Donna is blunt, precise, unfiltered, but with a big heart beneath all the banter. But we come back to what I was saying ages ago about 'turning' characters. If Rose can be selfish, then her finest moments will come when she's selfless. If Martha keeps quiet, then her moments of revelation - like her goodbye to the Doctor in Last of the Time Lords, or stuck with Milo and Cheen in Gridlock - make her fly. Donna is magnificently self-centered - not selfish, but she pivots everything around herself, as we all do - so when she opens up and hears the Ood song, or begs for Caecilius' family to be saved, then she's wonderful."

- from "The Writer's Tale", http://www.thewriterstale.com/

Writing Again

2010-04-17T15:04:00.000-07:00

I'm working on a new script. Well, it's been in the brainstorming stages, and I've just recently begun actually putting words on the page. It's a story about mystery, intrigue, and suspense - with a little action and adventure thrown in - and all done in the style of the classic 60s spy movies.

As I've been working with Josh, who is co-writing with me, we've come up with multiple ways of picturing the characters. We've found a few quotes that seem to describe our two main characters quite well, and just for fun, I've decided to share them with you:

BEN
"He attacked everything in life with a mix of extraordinary genius and naive incompetence, and it was often difficult to tell which was which."
-- Douglas Adams

NIKKI
"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day, and I believe in miracles."
-- Audrey Hepburn

Just some insight into the early stages of screenwriting. It's always useful as a writer to have as many angles of looking at something as possible. That way, if you get stuck from one angle, you can try another. Sometimes these angles are images, or quotes, or inspired by real people. Sometimes it's just a mood, or an atmosphere... or a song.

He always runs while others walk,
He acts while other men just talk,
He looks at this world and wants it all,
So he strikes like Thunderball.

He knows the meaning of success,
His needs are more so he gives less,
They call him the winner who takes all,
And he strikes like Thunderball.

Any woman he wants he'll get
He will break any heart without regret.

His days of asking are all gone,
His fight goes on and on and on,
But he thinks that the fight is worth it all,
So he strikes like THUNDERBALL...

The Impossible Dream

2010-04-15T10:05:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow, everyone's gonna know me better,
and tomorrow, everyone's gonna drink my wine.
And tomorrow, everyone's gonna read my letter,
and my story of love and a love that could never be mine...
-- The brothers Gibb

I took part in a discussion last night that led to some intriguing thoughts. In the interest of further pondering, I am writing them here. So... Superman wants to bring about peace on earth. Batman wants to stop crime in Gotham. What's the problem with this? Those things are NEVER going to happen. Once you think about it, almost every hero has some sort of impossible goal. Even if it's as simple as stopping evil, you know these heroes are never going to achieve it. As soon as you crush an arch-nemesis, evil will always spring from somewhere else, it's just the way the world works.

...And isn't the definition of insanity 'doing something over and over again and expecting different results'? Our heroes will NEVER achieve what it is they strive for - couldn't that be seen as foolish? I can think of one other literary figure who seems strikingly similar to these examples... Don Quixote. If Batman and Quixote are so similar, what's the difference between being a hero and being a fool?

To dream the impossible dream...
To fight the unbeatable foe...
To bear with unbearable sorrow...
To run where the brave dare not go...
To right the unrightable wrong...
To love pure and chaste from afar...
To try when your arms are too weary...
To reach the unreachable star...
-- The Man of La Mancha

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

2010-03-22T13:08:00.000-07:00

There's no earthly way of knowing
Which direction we are going
There's no knowing where we're rowing
Or which way the river's flowing

Is it raining, is it snowing
Is a hurricane a-blowing

Not a speck of light is showing
So the danger must be growing
Are the fires of Hell a-glowing?
Is the grisly reaper mowing?

Yes, the danger must be growing
For the rowers keep on rowing!
And they're certainly not showing
Any signs that they are slowing!!

I must confess: When I first saw the 1971 version of "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" I was frightened out of my mind. It might have had something to do with the fact that I was 8 years old and my mind was prone to attaching reality to the movies I watched, or maybe it was that my sisters were so scared that they left me alone in a dark room to finish it, or maybe it was the extremely brilliant surreal execution of the film thanks to Mel Stuart and Roald Dahl.

Needless to say, when each of those children had something horrific happen to them, and Gene Wilder treated it with such nonchalant flippancy, It scared the socks off me.

...But I recently re-watched it, and I found every single aspect of the film to be delightful and full of life. I can still see why I was terrified as a child, but now the wild ride is much more enjoyable. The colors are bold, the nonsense is delicious, Gene Wilder is simultaneously off his rocker and the sanest man in the room. The songs are fun, and there is a wonderful point to it all that speaks to both kids and adults. And besides, the Snozzberries really DO taste like Snozzberries!

In short, I think this film may have just rocketed into my top favorites of all time in only one viewing. Will I watch it again? You bet.

To quote Willy Wonka quoting Arthur O'Shaughnessy,

We are the music makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams;—
World-losers and world-forsakers,
On whom the pale moon gleams:
Yet we are the movers and shakers
Of the world for ever, it seems.

Ender's Game - a deeper look

2010-03-11T11:08:00.000-08:00

“As a species, we have evolved to survive. And the way we do it is by straining and straining and, at last, every few generations, giving birth to genius. The one who invents the wheel. And light. And flight. The one who builds a city, a nation, an empire.... Human beings are free except when humanity needs them. Maybe humanity needs you. To do something.”
- Col. Graff to Ender on his first day of battle school.

I was 12 years old when I first read Ender's Game. When I finished, I felt like I had lived a whole other life, that I had been Ender Wiggin, or at least lived with him. I was only a child, but so was he, and I connected very deeply with what I read. It was breathtaking. Then I read it again. I absolutely loved that book, and I still find it impossible to put down once I start. But even after many times through, I am still realizing the fullness and richness of the tapestry woven by Orson Scott Card.

To set the stage, The book takes place in the near future. Aliens, nick-named "buggers" because of their insectoid appearance, have invaded earth and were barely defeated by Earth's infantile space fleet. Now Earth's governments have begun monitoring children to find the smartest and the best, so that they can train them to become commanders, and be prepared to fight the buggers when the next imminent invasion comes. They do so by placing them in a battle school, an orbital facility where the children are put into teams and play strategy games in zero gravity battle simulations. Ender is the best at these games.
(SPOILERS AHEAD - I am warning you now, if you haven't read the book before, go and do so, and then come back to finish reading this)

"I've watched through his eyes, I've listened through his ears, and I tell you he's the one."

First of all, I think it's important to denote Ender as a superhero. His "super power" is his intelligence. He is a genius. The smartest kid in the world. Because of this power, he is chosen to be Earth's savior before he even knows it.

“I have to win this now, and for all time, or I’ll fight it every day and it will get worse and worse.”
- Ender

This is the problem that Ender faces over and over again. He ends up in a place where he can't back out. He has to use his power to win, or he will be destroyed. Sometimes figuratively, but sometimes literally. Probably the most important question for a superhero is: How does he use his super power? And part of what makes Ender a hero and not a villain is that he tries to use his power for virtue, not for selfishness. And some of the time, he doesn't even realize the full extent to which he uses his power over people. Like when his fellow student Bonzo Madrid challenges him and tries to kill him - Ender is only doing what he can to escape the situation alive, and to keep away any repercussions from other enemies at school. When he finds out he killed Bonzo, it destroys him emotionally.

“This was supposed to be a game. Not a choice between my own grisly death and an even worse murder. I’m a murderer, even when I play. Peter would be proud of me.”

One thing that I have only recently realized is that Ender's Game is a myth. It follows the conventions of mythological heroes as examined by Joseph Campbell, whose studies were inspirational to George Lucas in making Star Wars. 1) A miraculous birth - By law, parents are only allowed two children to avert overpopulation, yet Ender is born because of a special government decree. 2) A calling - Ender is called to save the world before he even knows it. 3) Ender is separated from his world, his family, everything he knows, and is taken away to be trained. Then he undergoes a series of trials and quests, which 'purify' him. 4) His training strips everything from him until he is practically dead, and must "descend into the underworld" - going back to earth, where he regains his purpose from his sister Valentine. 5) He rises again, back into space, where he must make his final confrontation with his enemy.

“In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, understand him well enough to defeat him, then in that very moment I also love him. I think it’s impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they love themselves. And then, in that very moment when I love them- ...I destroy them. I make it impossible for them to ever hurt me again. I grind them and grind them until they don’t exist.”

Another interesting perspective is the way the characters shed light onto the human soul. As Plato might see it: Ender is the intellect, Valentine is the heart, and Peter is the appetite or the desire. Ender sees both of his siblings within him, and this both comforts him and terrifies him.

“I know what you’re thinking, you bastard, you’re thinking that I’m wrong, that Ender’s like Peter. Well maybe I’m like Peter, but Ender isn’t, he isn’t at all, I used to tell him that when he cried, I told him that lots of times, you’re not like Peter, you never like to hurt people, you’re kind and good and not like Peter at all!”
- Valentine to Col. Graff

...And what would a hero be without a sidekick? Bean is one of my favorite characters ever, and it's hard to call him a sidekick, because he has a whole spinoff series devoted to him. ...But for this book, that is the role he plays, and to the extent that he helps Ender, and makes up for Ender's weaknesses, his role is extremely pivotal indeed.

"There is no teacher but the enemy. No one but the enemy will tell you what the enemy is going to do. ...I am your enemy from now on. From now on I am your teacher."
- Mazer Rackham

Finally, we have the mentor. ...And he's presented in such a way that I've never seen elsewhere. His stance and attitude are exactly what Ender needs - but not what he wants. Even when he has succeeded at battle school, Ender can never escape his enemies, or his calling. But the tragic part is that he hates what it is they are making him into. And as a reader, you are glad of it, because it means Ender is still human after all.

"Well, I'm your man. I'm the bloody bastard you wanted when you had me spawned. I'm your tool, and what difference does it make if I hate the part of me that you most need? What difference does it make that when the little serpents killed me in the game, I agreed with them, and was glad."
- Ender Wiggin to Mazer and Graff

There is so much more to unpack, but in the interest of keeping this blog post from becoming a novel in itself, I am going to end here. Needless to say, if a huge cigar-chomping studio exec ever offered me a bajillion dollars to adapt any book I wanted into a movie, Ender's Game would be it. No hesitation.

"The screen went blank, and words appeared. PLAY AGAIN?"

High Hopes

2010-02-26T11:51:00.000-08:00

Just finished writing through another draft of my screenplay (this is the one about vampires and cowboys and the end of the world). This re-write was a pretty hefty overhaul, about 50% of the previous draft had to be re-written.

...And when it comes down to it, the hardest part of writing is not the dialog or the beats - it's the bones, the fundamental puzzle pieces of what actually happens and how it all interlocks with the other pieces of the story, that's the bonkers part of writing. Once those pieces start clicking into place, it feels glorious, and the writing becomes so much easier. Or maybe that's just me.

This may tie into the way I work. I find that I write best when I have the character's voice in my head. I usually have to write a little bit before I really know a character, but once I know them, and once I know all their little quirks and mannerisms, their psychology, it all becomes fun. Like playing action figures or legos as a kid, I just like throwing my creations into different situations and seeing what happens.

Anyhow, it felt good to get all the way through again. It's feeling right, for the most part. Now all that's left is just some quick revisions to a few scenes and overall polishes, and the script will be ready to be read!

The grass was greener
The light was brighter
The taste was sweeter
The nights of wonder
With friends surrounded
The dawn mist glowing
The water flowing
The endless river

The aged, broken voice

2010-02-24T08:57:00.000-08:00

There's something rather bizarre that I've realized about myself, more specifically my taste in vocal performances. ...And here it is: I love listening to old guys sing.

Vocal chords all old and leathery, voice sounding like sandpaper, and a diaphragm too old to support hitting the range of notes it used to be able to... It's pretty much the opposite of what you could call "good" singing. But I don't care. I love it.

Take, for example, Johnny Cash in his later years. This song, when sung by Cash, sounds way more awesome to me than the original performers. And one of my favorite songs ever is this Bob Dylan original called Not Dark Yet. And this guy performs covers of songs that blow the originals out of the water! Okay, that last one was just for fun. ...But you can't deny there's something fascinating about that old man...

...And maybe that's just it. It's not the hitting of notes, it's the character in the voice, it's the tangible feeling of history that is so engaging.

A lot of people say they can't stand Bob Dylan's voice. But I feel that the gravelly, raspy utterances work perfectly with the beautiful, sonorous music backing him up. He refuses to sing along with the notes, instead filling out the spaces in between with a lilting counter-rhythm. ...And the fact that you can get a sense that he's seen just about everything on the face of the earth makes it so that I cannot tear my eyes away. Or my ears.

As a writer, I love the sound of unique voices, unique ways of saying things, mannerisms, idioms, and dialects, and it's something that I wish to capture in my stories. If a character has a voice, a tangible voice that leaps off the page and engages the reader, then it is a success.

Anyways. Just some musings. When I grow old, I just want to be as awesome as this guy.

Sometimes...

2010-02-23T15:59:00.000-08:00

...sometimes life feels like this:...and all you can do is hope that when it's all over, you still have your other boot.

The Best Films of 2009

2010-01-12T11:09:00.000-08:00

Well, who's to say they're the best? ...but they're my favorite films of the year, so take it or leave it.

In review, here's my post on 2008's best and worst.

And now, on with the list:
(btw - click on these images for hi-res)

10. The Imaginarium of Doctor ParnassusAn excellent film from Terry Gilliam, wildly imaginative as usual. Plus, Tom Waits as the devil is sheer brilliance!

9. KnowingAn early surprise this year, Knowing is a story about a man who must come to terms with the end of the world. And trust me, the end is well worth it.

8. The Princess and the FrogA return to Disney traditional animation, and a return to the story quality of the days of Lion King. So good!

7. TetroA beautiful and personal film by Francis Ford Coppola.

6. MoonI'm pretty sure this is going to get snubbed by the Oscars this year, but Sam Rockwell delivers the performance of a lifetime in this awesome space drama.

5. Where the Wild Things AreSheer joy. Spike Jonze delivers a riotous romp and a touching emotional story, all in one film.

4. District 9Another huge surprise, and a breath of fresh air for 'alien invasion' movies. Gritty yet epic.

3. A Serious Man
The Coen Brothers give us a film that is so hilarious and yet utterly depressing at the same time. It's painful how closely it reflects real life.

2. The Brothers BloomOne of the best mixes of cleverness, emotion, and hilarity I have ever seen. A stylish con man story that keeps you guessing, and a perfect payoff.

1. UpPixar strikes again, this time with the most emotional movie of the year. I love this movie so much.

(Honorable Mentions: The Lovely Bones, Star Trek, (500) Days of Summer, Avatar, and Sherlock Holmes.)

THE WORST LIST: (pretty self-explanatory, right?)

3rd worst: Terminator: SalvationThis had high potential. So in a way, it had the farthest to fall. ...And yes, Christian Bale. I am trashing up your scene.

2nd worst: Transformers 2: Revenge of the FallenWhen I saw the first Transformers, I asked myself, "how could they possibly screw up a movie about giant robots any worse than this?" ...and then came the sequel.

1st worst movie of the year: WatchmenAn utter piece of trash, the only redeemable quality was some Bob Dylan music in the soundtrack. Otherwise, this movie completely and utterly fails. And it's a shame, too, because the graphic novel is so excellent. In a way it's ironic that director Zach Snyder thought he was being so faithful to the source material. Spare yourself. Do not watch this movie.

There you go. I hope this has been helpful.

Ciao!

Script Update....

2009-05-18T08:20:00.000-07:00

Wow, so it's been about three weeks since I last posted. I didn't mean to take this long of a break, but my week long trip to Virginia sort of threw everything out of balance. So now, I feel like I need to write an update on where things are, so I can feel a little more closure to this script thing.

So as I mentioned in my last post, the first draft was finished on April 26, and even though I wasn't proud of it at that point, I considered it a success that it was done. 90 whole pages. That's more than I have ever written in a single document in my life, I think... So I was pretty happy with that.

So then left for a week, and while I was traveling, I sort of used that as a chance to push the story out of my head and think about stories on a more abstract level, and process again what I wanted to do with this script, and what my goals were. This turned out to be very helpful when I got back home and started writing again, on the second draft. There were a number of additions and deletions of scenes, and basically I was doing major structural changes to the story.

Last night, I finished the second draft. I have finally gotten the overall story to a place where I am pretty happy with it, and that makes me very pleased. The next step will be to go over the entire thing and do the detail work, refine the descriptions, polish the dialog where needed, and basically check for minor problems. Once that stage is done, I will be ready to start having other people read it and give me some good ol' healthy feedback. Which is always difficult to swallow, but generally good for learning how to be a better writer.

Anyways, That's all from my end. Things are pretty positive over here, and I'm excited to have done all this work and to be so near the end. ...Or is it just the beginning???

Script Blitz: April 26

2009-04-28T00:04:00.000-07:00

Momentous news: The script is finished! yaaaaaaayyy!!!...

I had been really busy on Friday and Saturday, so I didn't get any writing done then, but on Sunday afternoon I decided to make up for lost time, and wrote 7 and a half pages until I was finished with the whole thing. I'm pretty proud of myself. :)

Of course, I have no misconceptions about it being perfect or anything. In fact I already know it is lacking in many areas, but that's completely fine for now, the important thing is that I made it, and I did it in 26 days! Woohoo!

To be honest, I have known for some time that I had to finish it this weekend, because as I've mentioned before, I'm traveling to the East coast on Wednesday, and I was really wanting to finish before I left. The plan is, I'll be gone for a week, and when I get back, I'll have been away from my script to look at it even more objectively than I can now, and I will be ready to tear into it for some major re-writing. As Statler and Waldorf would say, "It wasn't half bad." "Nope! It was ALL bad!"
It feels good to have finished the whole thing. And I learned a lot in the process. So maybe I'll do it again a month from now, and write another script... who knows?

Script Blitz: April 23 (and Preservation Hall)

2009-04-24T09:00:00.000-07:00

3 more pages today. Felt very tired, but somehow it was perfect because the scene was about the characters being tired. Funny how that makes it somehow fun to write...

Bought a new CD last night. It was a greatest hits of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. They play New Orleans jazz like no one else! I am loving every second of it. Here is an example of the awesomeness that abounds. There's just something deep down about this kind of music, that just makes you want to tap your foot and bob your head to it. It's very loose and free and I really don't have adequate words to describe it, so it's best you just follow the above link.

Anyways, I just thought I should mention that because I have been fascinated with New Orleans jazz ever since I heard of it some years ago. I hope you like it too!

Ciao!

Script Blitz: April 22 (and Doctor Who)

2009-04-23T09:13:00.000-07:00

I got home tonight and sat down and wrote 4 and a half pages. And then I experienced some of the best television I have ever seen.

Let me explain. No. There is too much. Let me sum up. I have recently started watching a British show called Doctor Who. And I just finished watching Series 2, which completely blew me away with how awesome it was. I know a few of you readers will be like, "Oh, I know all about Doctor Who!" but some of you are completely in the dark about what it is exactly. So here goes.

Doctor Who is a cult sci-fi show in Britain that boasts to be the longest running (started in 1963) sci-fi show ever created, and is something of a phenomenon over there. It had been on hiatus for a little over a decade, until in 2005 they revamped it, made it more fast-paced and energetic, and overall a much better show.

The premise is that 'The Doctor' is an alien Time Lord that watches over the space-time continuum and rushes in to save the day where ever there may be trouble.
Rose is a regular everyday human girl that gets swept up in the adventure.

The Doctor travels around in the TARDIS, which looks like a police box from the 60s...
But whenever the Doctor gives up his life to save the universe, he comes back in a different form. he looks completely different, but he's the same crazy Doctor!
Every season, they build up to some sort of crazy climax, and it is always awesome.
Yeah. So that's it. I love this show. I love it to death. It's adventurous, funny, scary, and emotional, all in epic ways. It's now vying for top spot in my favorite shows of all time list. And I can't wait to watch more...

Script Blitz: April 21

2009-04-22T08:25:00.000-07:00

3 more pages. Another day, and three more pages. I can see the end in sight now.

Struggled today with how to write the scene I was on, because I had outlined it to be a rather dark scene, but I didn't want to take the characters to quite that dark a place (yet), so I was trying to figure out a good way of accomplishing what I wanted to in a different way. So I brought a different character in, and made the whole thing a conflict with a rather amusing interplay between them, and it accomplished exactly what I needed it to.

I am still trying to figure out the ending of this story. I mean I know how it ends, but I don't know yet quite how I'm going to get there. Basically there needs to be an ambush. And before I write more tomorrow, I need to research some ambushes so that I can think through how to construct this one. Can anyone think of good ambushes to reference from favorite movies (or books)? I welcome all suggestions.

Ciao,

Script Blitz: April 20

2009-04-21T08:37:00.000-07:00

Still in the middle of a pre-summer heat wave, it got up to 100 degrees yesterday.... it's supposed to cool down tomorrow, so here's hoping, anyways....

Wrote 4 pages today, and supposedly that means I only have 16 pages left to write. But looking at my outline, I think it's going to take more than that to finish up this story. But that's okay, 90 pages was just an arbitrary goal. I'm going to have to do a lot of serious editing anyways, so all that really matters is completing the story in a way that works as best as I can make it. Then I'll sort the rest out later.

I'm mainly just hoping that I'll be able to finish the story before I go on my trip. Seems likely that I will.

Anyhow, that's it for today. Ciao!

Script Blitz: April 19 (and Summer heat)

2009-04-20T08:38:00.000-07:00

6 pages today. Felt good to get a big chunk done again, and I totaled up the page count again, and I'm at just over 70 pages. Woohoo! That means there are only 20 or so more pages to write, and the first draft will be done. And since it's the 20th, that technically means I only have to write 2 pages a day to finish my original goal of completing 90 pages in a month. But this does not mean I am going to slack off. I'm going to keep pushing through and finish as quickly as possible, so that I can start editing.

My boss is sending me to Virginia to shoot some footage of Colonial Williamsburg on the 30th, which in itself is cool, but it will also mean I will be able to take a break from writing and when I come back a week later, I will hopefully be able to come back to do some much needed heavy-duty re-writes with some good perspective. Sometimes giving yourself a week away from your work is the only way to see it objectively. I have no misconceptions about this draft being amazing, so it shouldn't be difficult.

Anyhow, other than all that, today was a scorcher. First day in the year to get above 90 degrees (Fahrenheit) and boy was it hot. My roommates and I jumped in the pool to cool off, and since it is still April, we found the pool to be (rather ironically) extremely cold. But it felt great after all the swealtering heat.

So the weekend was a success. I have 70 odd pages written, and 10 days to go before flying to the east coast. I think I'm just about ready for another adventure!

Ciao!

Script Blitz: April 18 (and Nute Gunray)

2009-04-19T09:29:00.000-07:00

Today Josh and I drove up to Burbank to meet with Brian. Had a story meeting which went quite productively, and then came back down to celebrate Anthony's birthday. Happy Birthday, Anthony! I got him a Nute Gunray action figure from Star Wars episode 1 that is sure to become his favorite. After I gave it to him, we both started quoting the slimy, noseless Neimoidian by saying things like "At last... we are getting RE-sults." and "Well, no, but, uh... seal off the bridge!" What a great character for an action figure...

Then I solidified yesterday as a good day when I showed Dark City to Linus Renee and Amanda. I really love that movie. I also happen to have a soapbox about that director's (Alex Proyas) latest film, Knowing, which came out in theaters some time ago. Most people didn't go see it because of some reason or another, but as it turns out, it was a really awesome film. I recommend it to everyone.

But after all that was over, I nestled down at my computer and wrote 2.5 more pages in my script. Still not quite up to snuff on the whole 3 page a day goal, but I'll try to write more tomorrow.

Script Blitz: April 17

2009-04-18T09:21:00.000-07:00

Sigh... unproductive last night. Got home and was tired. Nate somehow got me to watch a movie with him... so by the time it was over, it was 11:30.

So... I wrote a page and a half and then gave up and went to bed. Will try to do better next time.

Script Blitz: April 16 (and Doctor Who)

2009-04-17T08:47:00.000-07:00

I was inspired last night by an episode of Doctor Who, Series 2 called "The Girl in the Fireplace". It was about Rose and the Doctor visiting Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour in 18th century France. It was amazing how well they pulled off the period setting, involved mechanical robot monsters, time travel, and of course the loony Doctor running about, and yet managed to tell such a heart-wrenchingly emotional story. Hats off to Steven Moffat for writing this episode, it truly is a great one.

After recovering from the awesomeness that had just blown me halfway across the room, I wrote 6 and a half pages of my script. Felt good, but was very tired by the end. The good news was that I have now finally completed a rough draft of the entire first half of the script! I have scenes written for the second half, but at last the first half is finished.

I was also able to work through the second half of the story, and fill out the outline to get a better picture of who the second half needs to play. It was a comforting feeling to be able to look at the big picture with a completed outline. Now I just gotta push through to the end, and see where this all goes! Wish me Luck!

Script Blitz: April 15 (and BSG)

2009-04-16T08:34:00.000-07:00

I want to pause for a moment today and say something that I've had on my mind for some time. I like the old Battlestar Galactica show more than the new one. That's it. I'm just tired of everyone being so horrified when they find out, so now it's out in the open. And I know that people who don't know me might shake their heads disapprovingly and think I'm a shallow person if I don't explain, so here's why: To me, how you get somewhere is just as important as where you end up. Everyone raves about the new BSG's season finales, and how awesome they are. But honestly, I get tired of wading through hours of angst, tension, and politics to get there. At least in the old show, the point was simple: to have crazy adventures about men vs robots. And it was fun. Maybe it's just that I don't mind cheesy effects and suits in my scifi, but at least it doesn't feel like you're getting dragged through a ditch every time you turn the show on. And you gotta admit, those 80s plastic spaceship models are still way cooler than any CG. :)

I'm not saying it's a bad show. I think most people would agree that the new BSG is a well constructed show. But I don't enjoy watching it most of the time. I don't consider the commentary on social-political situations of our real history to be all that interesting to me. I think politics in our real world suck, and I really don't care to see them mirrored in a TV show every week. So that combined with the fact that I can at least at the basic level enjoy an episode of the old show, with it's fun but simple stories, means I would rather watch it any day.

Okay. That aside, I wrote 3 pages last night. Not too much to report about it, that's why I decided to share my thoughts on BSG. Just trying to spice up the old blog, that's all. Let me know what you think.

Ciao.

Script Blitz: April 14

2009-04-15T08:43:00.000-07:00

Completed unfinished scene from two nights ago. 3 pages. Finished early and watched some Doctor Who. It's fun to watch that show, and look for all the little hints and clues they leave as each season goes on, that will eventually build to some sort of epic climax at the end of the season. Must remember in my own writing to always be thinking in terms of setups and payoffs.

To be honest, it's difficult to think about setups and payoffs without a complete outline. It's so far been sort of thinking as I go along, "hmm this could be an interesting payoff to that", but it has been rather discombobulated. But, even if my first draft is severely lacking in that area, I know I'm going to have to rewrite it anyways. I can make sure everything flows better once I have some sort of version of the whole thing.

One cool thing is that I am getting close to finishing the complete first half of the script. There's an event that happens at the halfway point that I am working towards, and so that will be a landmark worth noting when I cross it. Plus, the story will become a whole new beast for the second half, so that should be exciting.

Well, until next time, ciao.

Script Blitz: April 13

2009-04-14T09:18:00.000-07:00

Got home rather late last night, and felt too tired to do anything, but had a bowl of Cheerios and decided to just have at it. Decided not to return to the second half of the scene I was writing the previous night, because during the day I had had an idea for a different scene, and I heard that it was a good idea to write the part of the story that you are most excited about. Good advice. Wrote 2 and a half pages before I went to bed.

Some other good advice that I have learned works well for me is to "break the ice" with the blank page, so to speak. It is often hard to start writing, especially when you don't have any idea how the scene is going to transcend the mundane. But when this is the case, just force yourself to write a line. Just one line, could be dialogue, could be action, but what that does is then you start filling in what happens around that line, either before or after, and it becomes much easier to think in terms of action/reaction, etc. I have found that often I only stumble upon the cool thing in the scene once I have started to write it.

So that's what happened last night, I discovered a neat twist I could throw on the scene as I was writing it, and it turned out to be not half bad. Still. Must remember to start writing earlier so that I don't endanger my bedtime...

Script Blitz: April 12

2009-04-13T08:40:00.000-07:00

2 and a half pages last night. Got tired because it was midnight and I had had a pretty busy weekend, so I decided to go to sleep. I could have gone on, but the scene I was writing was going to take at least another hour and I didn't feel like staying up that late. Gotta have the sleep you know.

But I think I have the first half of the story pretty well figured out now. So that's pretty cool.

Anyhow, this is kind of an uninteresting post, not much new here... Not sure what I'm going to do about that yet. Hmm.

Script Blitz: April 11

2009-04-11T23:17:00.000-07:00

I am very tired. Today I spent 8 hours on the road and shot a scene for a short film while I was out there. So I basically got up at 6 in the morning and got back at 8pm, already exhausted. But I sat down to my computer with the goal of writing something, dreading it because I knew the scene that I was planning to write was going to be crap. A piece of information needed to be told to another character, and she needed to be horrified by it. Yippee.

Nothing was coming. So I got up and took a shower (I was still feeling dirty and sweaty from the shoot) and after that I felt a lot cleaner. I went out on our balcony and let the cold night air refresh me, and as I was thinking, an idea came to me about the scene, which suddenly took this boring piece of information that needed to trade hands suddenly much more compelling. I sat down and wrote the scene, and 5 pages later, I was pretty happy with it. Sometimes it's surprising what a different context can do for a plot point!

...Which brings me to another cool revelation, and that is that it brings my page count to 45 pages, meaning I am halfway through. Wahoo! ...And it's only the 11th of April! I'm feeling pretty good about this month of writing so far.

Anyways, that was my exciting anecdote for the day, and now it's off to bed, to rest my limbs and my brain!

And tomorrow's Easter. Success.

Script Blitz: April 10

2009-04-10T20:29:00.000-07:00

Got home from work, watched the first full episode of Doctor Who: Series 2 with David Tennant (well, it was the Christmas special but still awesome), wrote 5 more pages tonight, and now I'm off to introduce some friends to Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I realized recently that even though only six months ago, I barely watched any television, I am now in the middle of 4 extremely excellent shows. I have a lot of watching to do!

But, anyways, not much else to report, the writing is going pretty steadily... the page count is just about up to 40 now, which is cool progress... but yeah. I think that's just about all for now. Tomorrow is a film shoot, so I may be completely too exhausted to write... we'll see.

Later, y'all

Script Blitz: April 9

2009-04-10T08:49:00.000-07:00

Completed 3 pages last night. Struggled with this one a bit, kept trying to remind myself not to worry about whether or not it was good. Then I realized it wasn't as much being about how good it was, the problem was that I wasn't sure if what I was writing was supposed to happen or if something else was supposed to happen. I've reached a stage where a lot more is resting on my incomplete outline, and all the plot elements are going to have to come together, and soon.

Then I realized that for now, all the plot stuff didn't matter anyways, and I should just write for the discipline of it. I ended up changing the scene halfway through, but it all worked out and I am happy with the scene. So it's all good.

But I'm still getting used to the fact that it is going to be a long haul. After a week, things have sort of started to drift into habit, but it's become a fine balancing act. I come home from work every day at 5:30, and eat dinner. I can either start writing then, and try to work on concept stuff as well as my three pages, but if I do that, I will have spent all evening writing, and then it's sleep and back to work. And if I do that too many times in a row, I get extremely worn out. So last night I watched a movie with Anthony while he edited a short film I shot for him a couple months ago. It was a nice relaxation time, and a movie that I have seen before and enjoy. Then I came home and wrote for a couple hours.

Anyways, I'm buckling in for the last two thirds of the journey, and hopefully it won't get too much harder before it gets easier. :)

Until next time, Ciao, i miei amici!

Script Blitz: April 8

2009-04-08T22:57:00.000-07:00

Breaking News! As of tonight I have crossed the 30 page mark! (And there was much rejoicing. Yay...).

I wrote 5 pages tonight, which brings my tally up to 30 exactly, according to my blog, but I'm pretty sure it will add up to a bit more than that when it's properly formatted. Anyways, it's a cool landmark, being a third of the way through, and I feel it's a pretty big accomplishment. So, it's cause for celebration! I'm eating a celebratory bowl of Cheerios right now! (And then it's off to bed pretty soon).

Anyways, I feel good about the 5 I wrote tonight, they come right after the "stunning" intro scenes, and basically set up the locale of where all this takes place, and introduces more characters. The other cool thing is that as I write more, I am simultaneously getting a better idea of how the whole story will play out. It's taking more and more of a definite form every day, and it's pretty exciting.

Okay, well it's time for bed for me, but not until after I dance my 30 pages victory jig. Okay, now for some sleep.

Ciao!

Script Blitz: April 7

2009-04-08T09:03:00.000-07:00

Deep down, I hope some of you readers out there are benefiting from my blogs about writing. But I think there is an equally important implication it has had on me. When I started this whole idea of a Script Blitz, I doubted I could keep it up for very long without someone constantly nagging at me like a dripping faucet. But I've somehow managed to keep writing every day so far, and I think the knowledge that I am going to force myself to blog about it the next morning has helped motivate me. Oh the hidden benefits of blogging! :)

So anyways, I had to drag myself through the 3 pages last night, and it didn't come as easily as it did the night before, but at least I did what I committed to. So it's a success in that aspect. I also spent a lot of time developing the outline and characters more. In fact, I think I may need to write in a couple more characters for the story to work. I think one of my characters is kind of a contradiction right now, and if I split him into two characters, it will be a lot more consistent. There has been a lot of this sort of 'shopkeeping' that takes a lot of time, but every time I dig in and analyze my story, I always come out with good things that make the story less bad and more good (sorry to all you grammatic fanatics out there).

A cool realization happened last night. I already knew that the story is taking a lot from classic westerns, and I discovered that one of these characters had the ability to represent the "wild" of the west, just like in the old westerns. The man that is more comfortable in the wilderness than in the city. I love characters like that, because I grew up in a sort of wilderness area, and I feel a strong connection to nature, so I love the idea of writing a character like that.

Well, that's it for now. Until next time, Ciao!

Script Blitz: April 6

2009-04-07T08:34:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I was pretty discouraged yesterday, but thanks to some good, healthy advice and encouragement from my friends, I was reminded of the importance of the meaning of this mission I'm on currently: To get myself to write. That is all.

I need to remind myself that while I should care about the quality of my work, and care a lot about the story I am telling, in order to improve I need to set those priorities and just write. Most importantly, not to be afraid to write bad material, but just to start typing words and let it flow from the gut. Hey, it's a first draft, they're supposed to be terrible, right? One thing I have learned about writing is that the first draft is usually the hardest part of the writing process, so it makes sense to get it out on to the page, even if it is the crappiest thing I've ever written. I'll rewrite it. And when I do, I'll come up with more ideas. That's how it works. And if you write from your gut, you open the door to the possibility of writing something really good that even you didn't expect to come out.

An Italian filmmaker named Bernardo Bertolucci said something of that sort that applies to ALL filmmaking, that you always have to find ways of leaving the door open, inviting the possibility of something genius to come walking in at a completely unexpected moment.

So that's the mindset I went in with last night, just to dive in, find a part of the story I was particularly interested in, and just start writing. For two and a half hours I wrote, and I ended up with 8 pages! Pretty much the entire ending of the movie, actually. And I even liked a good deal of it when I was done! So the experiment was a success.

I've learned that I need to continue to push myself to just write, without concerning myself with whether or not it will be good, and see what happens from there. At the very least, I'll end up with a crappy script, and I'll get to rewrite it. But who knows, maybe it will turn out okay, and maybe I might even discover some things I wasn't expecting to. At the very least, it will be an adventure.

So here's to adventures. A wise man once said, “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.”

Script Blitz: April 5

2009-04-06T09:17:00.000-07:00

Got very little accomplished. Wrote 1 page of a scene, then re-wrote the same one page, and then stopped. Realized it needed a lot more work put into the context of setting things up than it currently has.

I got a little bit of stuff I liked, but overall I'm pretty bummed that I didn't get much done. Gotta work on this more, or I'll never get it finished by the end of April.

Script Blitz: April 4

2009-04-04T23:28:00.000-07:00

Did a lot of writing today. As a matter of fact, I only wrote the standard 3 pages, which happen to be the first 3 pages of the movie. But beyond that, most of what I was writing today was not actually script pages, but other more important stuff. For one, I started outlining the film. Didn't get too far with that, but at least put a lot of thought into the story as a whole. Secondly, I made a discovery regarding the 'mythology' of the film.

I have been working through a lot of thoughts that I have had about the 'world' of the film, meaning that the story is fantastical and takes place in a world slightly different than our own. A lot of these thoughts have felt disconnected or incomplete so far, but tonight I was able to think through it and come up with some really cool stuff as to how it all fits together. It's like that moment when you are doing a puzzle, and you have put together a section here, and a section there, but then you stick them in the frame and you can suddenly see what the puzzle is going to look like. That's what this felt like, and it was cool to suddenly be able to see it in a new light that brought all those pieces together.

To tell you a little more of what I am talking about without revealing too much yet, I should say that the movie I am writing involves vampires. I knew from the start that I wanted to make this movie about vampires, because they are such interesting mythical creatures that open up possibilities to look into a lot of interesting themes that I find fascinating. I even have had a cool new way of presenting them visually and stylistically that hasn't really been done before, but I know that to make this a good movie I am going to need to re-tell the vampire myth in my own way. I want to remain as true to classical vampire lore as possible, but also delve into what that means from a new perspective.

This is major big picture stuff, and I've known for a while that I would need to get this all figured out, and tonight I made a major breakthrough. I am really excited to see where it ends up going, and what stories I'll be able to tell in this world.

Script Blitz: April 3

2009-04-04T15:08:00.000-07:00

2 Pages this time. Didn't feel bad about not hitting the 3-page mark, because I wrote 5 the day before... and I figured out a few cool things about one of the characters, so it was a worthwhile 2 pages.

So far, my writing has been scenes that could be in this movie, but in all honesty I'm going to need to sit down and figure this out more. It becomes really difficult working without an outline, especially when there is an ensemble of characters and layers of mystery to unfold. So, I'm going to try to outline this thing. George Lucas says he usually breaks up his stories into 30 or 60 'scenes' just to get the structure right. It's very mathematical, but it gives you a new perspective, from a step back, and can be very helpful. I think I'll try it that way this time, and see where it takes me.

The neat thing about approaching it the way I have been, is that by writing random scenes for the characters, Not only does it help me get a better idea of who the characters are, but it gives me ideas for themes each character can deal with. And most likely I'll be able to use them in the final script. When they were casting for LOST, Damon Lindelof wrote sides for the auditions that weren't in the pilot (a practice I've done before), but if you watch the audition tapes, you can find those scenes in later episodes of the first season. So, it seems apparent that writing character stuff without the limitation of an outline can be very helpful. But of course, at some point, the outline needs to be written. And I plan on doing that this weekend.

So, until next time, cheerio!

Script Blitz: April 2

2009-04-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

So! Last night went better.

Took a little time yesterday to write more notes about the characters and their histories, plus their relationships to each other. I didn't touch on half of the characters, but the ones I did write about, I have a much stronger grasp on. As Chris Hartwell would say, "Ganar." *

Last night went well, I was actually happy with the stuff I wrote this time. I actually wrote a 5 page scene, which was pretty cool. I don't have limits for the scenes I write, I just let the scene dictate how long it should be, with the general idea of 3 minutes is a good average length for a scene. It was actually kinda cool that I was 2 pages above par (even though that sounds bad if you are a golfer). I don't know in the long run if I want this scene to run 5 pages, it might be a little long, but I suppose I won't be able to tell that until I have written much, much more.

This scene is about the STRANGER, who is sort of a Man With No Name / Clint Eastwood type and HIP HOP, who is sort of a combo of Lando Calrissian and a black version of Sawyer from LOST. Their interactions are going to be very fun to write, I can already tell...

Well, that's all for now, overall things are looking up. This weekend I'm going to do more legwork on the outline. Right now I have this sort of amorphous muddle of scenes, arcs, and characters in my head, I think it will do some good to organize that a little.

Until next time, good afternoon, good evening, and good night.

* Yes. It's Spanish for 'win.'

Script Blitz: April 1

2009-04-03T08:42:00.000-07:00

O-kay! so. I have a long month ahead of me.

About a month ago, a friend of mine told me he was going to try to write a 90 page screenplay in the month of April. Three pages a day. And I said to myself, "Clyde," (that's what I call myself) "...that sounds both fun and difficult. You should try it."

So I did. I am. I know this is technically a day late, but I actually did start off on April 1st (no joke) and began to write. I have had a concept in my mind for a while, and I have only a rough pitch and some notes to go off of, but sometimes having too clear of an idea of what your story is going to look like can be a good way to restrict the creative juices. So diving right in, I started writing.

Now I'm going to blog about my exploits. I'll try to do one post for every day I write. They may be brief, but we'll see how it goes. Please feel free to comment if you want to know more, or if you have any questions.

April 1
The first day was pretty difficult. I had a lot of loose ideas of scenes, and not enough detail about the backstories to really feel like I knew the characters yet. I realized I'm going to need more of an outline before I go much further. But, struggled through it, and wrote 3 pages. Not too proud of it. But it felt good to have accomplished the 3 page quota, and I started to get a better idea of who one of the characters is.

This scene was about one of the leads, ETHAN. He's a small town kid who is tired of a small town life and wants to go out and do something BIG, go on an adventure or something. He's going to be easy to write, because I had more than a little of that in me when I was growing up.

Anyhow. I'm pleased with myself for accomplishing the first day of writing. Huzzah.

The Best Films of 2008

2009-01-24T14:59:00.000-08:00

Okay... So the Academy has just recently released their Oscar nominations for 2008, and as usual, they have selected a whole bunch of boring, depressing, and well, predictable Oscar fodder films in their lineup.

And sure, they're entitled to their own opinions, but heck, so am I, right? So here's the REAL list of best films that came out in 2008. And by best I mean my favorite.

...Or do I...?

But seriously, on with the list:
(btw - click on these images to attain full effect in Hi-Res)

10. CloverfieldWhat? This movie came out this year? Oh yeah, in JANUARY. It was awesome! Bringing the moster movie genre back from the dead! ROAR!

9. My Blueberry NightsNo words can describe this film. Just watch it and prepare to fall in love.

8. City of EmberGrossly underrated and no one saw this movie. But it is teh aw3s0m3.

7. The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonA lot of people hate on this movie, but I find it oddly inspiring. And beautiful.

6. Burn After ReadingI don't know what's funnier, the movie or that moment after the movie when you realize this movie is about nothing actually happening. At all.

5. Slumdog MillionaireEver since ruining the zombie genre with 28 Days Later, Danny Boyle makes movies For The Win!!!

4. AustraliaBaz Luhrman making an epic romance tale... and with style!

3. HancockNobody saw this, but it is actually one of the most excellent Superhero stories of all time.

2. WALL-EI identified more with this robot than any other film character this year. WALL-E for Best Actor!

1. Speed RacerFast, fun, beautifully shot, and turbocharged by the Wachowsky brothers. It's escapism at it's best and it took me back to my childhood... and then blew me away with an awesome story. Go Speed Racer GO!!!

(Honorable Mentions: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Iron Man, Baghead, The Dark Knight, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Be Kind Rewind, Rambo, The Pineapple Express, and The Happening.)

Okay, I also feel like I should mention the worst films I saw this year. Just as a way of warning any of you who may be still thinking about watching them.

First of all, the Runner-Up Movie Fail award goes to...
The Quantum of Solace!!!
Yes. They replaced James Bond with Jason Bourne, and the result? it sucked!!!

3rd worst: Vantage Point

I think I gagged on this movie taking itself too seriously. And where did all this cheese come from?

2nd worst: Wanted

Everything about this movie screams angst and immaturity. Oh yeah, and they REALLY wanted to be as cool as Fight Club. Was this directed by a college student?

1st worst: The Spirit

'First worst' doesn't even begin to describe how bad this was. Try 'Worst movie ever made' and you will get close. Hopefully after this they won't allow Frank Miller to urinate all over the Buck Rogers franchise. (Gag)

There you go. Watch the movies on the first list. Avoid like the plague the ones on the second list. It's just that easy.

Ciao.

The New Year

2009-01-02T10:28:00.000-08:00

I guess I'm learning, I must be warmer now
I'll soon be turning, round the corner now
Outside the dawn is breaking
But inside in the dark I'm aching to be free
The show must go on.

-Queen

I'm not much one for new years resolutions.

I just never felt the need. In all the new years celebrations I've been to, even though everyone cheers at the extremely anti-climactic shiny ball dropping in Times Square, and toasts with their respective champagne and sparkling cider, I have never felt like anything new was really coming. I always felt the same mixture of hope, dread, and uncertainty that I always feel about the future. And since I always forget about the last New Year and everyone's resolutions after about a week into January, I see resolutions as being rather pointless exercises to make one feel better about oneself for the new year.

But this year has been different. Not dramatically, not even substantially, but I've felt something coherent about this new year nonetheless. Perhaps it's because since graduating college, my slightly less chaotic routine during the year has made it easier to have a more holistic view of the passing years. But I think mostly it's just a sense that I've been getting of where we are and where we've been as a culture.

I really can't express where this feeling has come from, but I just feel it in my gut that we are stagnating, that we are caught in some sort of downward spiral, that we really, really need something fresh to take us out of our current slump. Somehow, the never-ending grind of life is wearing on us, I've seen it in the people I know, the people I see around me, I see it in people through the online portal we call the internet, I see it in our music and movies, and worst of all is when I see it in myself.

I mean, obviously no one is perfect. And life IS hard, it's a fact that everyone has to deal with. our lives are full of challenges and hardships, and it can often feel unfair. But in the 1930s, when people's lives were exceptionally bad because of the great depression, entertainers and movies helped pick their lives back up again. People would go to adventure movies like King Kong, or comedies by the likes of Charlie Chaplain or the Marx Brothers.

But we don't seem to have a modern-day equivalent to those things. Instead we seek out dark and depressing films, we look for the morally ambiguous, and praise how well they reflect 'reality'. Now, these films can be good and artistic, and I am not knocking them in any way, but where are the films about fun, and goodness? Where are the films about the good things in life, about hope? Oh, that's right. We rated them the worst movies of the year. (see: Speed Racer. Honestly, it is a great film, yet everyone bashes on it, often before they've even seen it.) If we refuse to go to films, or bash them simply because they are fun, and don't reflect our ideas about 'reality', we are cheating ourselves from a good and healthy view of life, and we will merely continue to sink into a stagnation. I really hope that doesn't happen, but I fear that may be the path we're on.

I wish I could do something. I wish I could create something that would help us as a culture, as a people. But I suffer from the same problems as everyone else, I'm stuck in the same hamster wheel, and I seem to be powerless to do anything about it. But I will not give up. I am not going to make any new years resolutions, but I am going to try and live to the best of my ability. I am going to try to read more books, spread my horizons, I want to engage in creativity more, with drawing, filmmaking, music making, singing at the top of my lungs if I have to. I refuse to be dragged down and cower before the oblivion. I will strive against my shackles to be free until the day I die. The show must go on.

* * *

My soul is painted like the wings of butterflies
Fairytales of yesterday will grow but never die
I can fly - my friends
The show must go on
The show must go on
I'll face it with a grin
I'm never giving in
On - with the show -
I'll top the bill, I'll overkill
I have to find the will to carry on
On with the -
On with the show -
The show must go on...

Will James Bond Return?

2008-11-15T08:34:00.000-08:00

"James Bond will return." The words scroll up the screen as the last end credits song slowly fades out and the movie is over. I, along with millions of other people around the world had gone to see 'The Quantum of Solace' on opening day yesterday, and the experience left me with a mixture of joy and sadness. I have seen 'Casino Royale', and now 'Quantum of Solace', but I haven't seen James Bond since 'Die Another Day.' All I've seen in these last two films are a man that might some day be James Bond. He has high James Bond potential, but he is not James Bond.

When I was in high school, the cool thing to do was to listen to grunge rock. The point of such 'rock' (and I am using the term very loosely here) was to sound as depressed as possible, sing about how much life sucks, and make the music sound as gritty and dirty as possible. And all the high schoolers in the 90s heard it and said, "Woah, I identify with this because I feel depressed and life is hard!" And the music consequently became very popular. Epitomized by such bands as Nirvana, grunge music proved un-selfsustainable when all of it's contributors commited suicide and there was no one left to play the music.

So the Grunge fad faded from the scene and was replaced by other 'rock' movements, some with a bit more emotional range, some without (see: Emo) but the sole consolation to me was that Rock could become fun again. 'Rock' would never be that uniting force it was in the 70s and 80s, in fact you couldn't even call it 'Rock' anymore, but at least it was more fun to listen to.

Now we arrive at the early 2000s. Just when I thought we had finally seen the end of 'Grunge', the fad suddenly moves to the film world. In 2002, a movie called 'The Bourne Identity' comes out, a film that told an old and cliched story in a new way. It was dirty, it was gritty, and it focused on how much it's hero's life sucked. Hmm, sound familiar to you? Me too. I like to call this style of filmmaking 'Docu-Grunge,' as it seems to utilize the documentary style of filmmaking while applying a grunge ethos to it's visuals and content. Now, I want to pause here and say that I have nothing against this style on principle. I am not trying to make blanket statements and be a 'hater'. But I can't help but cringe when all of a sudden the word 'realistic' is commonly associated with this style, and it is implied that all other styles lack realism. Is it realistic to be depressed ALL the time? I'm not depressed all the time, does that make me unreal, or fake? The trend seems to be that in order for something to be good, it has to be uber-dramatic, dirty, and depressing. But in the long run, I'd rather watch Speed Racer than The Dark Knight.

But back to James Bond. Casino Royale was a 'reboot' of the James Bond franchise, which seems to mean that the producers looked around and said, "what's cool these days?" They found the Bourne films, and decided that in order for James Bond to be cool, he had to be presented in the all new 'Docu-Grunge' style. Gritty. Dirty. Depressed. At least when Martin Campbell directed Casino Royale, he preserved some of the visual flair that is characteristic of James Bond films with his sweeping camera movies and allowing the action scenes (though few and far between) to play out in longer shots and impress the audience with their excellence in execution. But now in Quantum of Solace, the camera has to be shaking and zoomed in as far as it will go and any one shot can't last longer than 1.5 seconds, reducing the film to a series of energetic bursts that force an intensity onto the situation instead of more subtle methods and allowing us to enjoy the scope of the visuals and appreciate the action. In trying so hard to copy the Bourne films, Bond has inherited the problems of the bourne films, and reduced itself to a bunch of camera tricks and gimmicky action scenarios. Ian Flemming intended his books to be a form of escapism, something more fun than realism, and the apple has seemingly fallen far from the tree.

Now, I don't want to sound too pessimistic here. The Quantum of Solace had a lot of things to like about it as a Bond film. Exotic locales, hints of the James Bond theme, plenty of action, and they finally re-introduced the silhouetted dancing ladies during the opening credits. But those things are only part of the combination that made Bond films awesome. Bond has always been different from other action heroes. Characteristically smooth and suave, while still calculating and precise, the way the films have been presented has always reflected this, and Bond has never had to 'compete' with other action heroes, and I don't feel like he should. Now, there are hints here and there that these last two films, since they are prequels about Bond becoming Bond, that they are slowly transitioning back into Bond being the awesomely suave and the coolest action star ever, and I dearly hope that they do, because I want my James bond back. I want the real James Bond. And I am hopeful that someday he WILL return.

A dream of mine...

2008-11-12T13:18:00.001-08:00

(click on image for high resolution version)

Space Mountain: the movie... This is pretty much my dream movie right now, and some day I'm going to pitch it to Walt Disney Studios and make it into an awesome film that kids and adults can enjoy!

Josh and I came up with this idea while at Disneyland, and it would be a retro-futuristic sci-fi adventure with all the cool stuff in it, like space heroes, scientists, rocket trains, black holes, orbiting hotels, and Gantry 44! Pretty much all the coolest things in the universe.

Someday I'll make this movie... someday.

Lost Highway

2008-11-11T08:38:00.000-08:00

The following is an account of what happened to me on November 6th, 2008. And while memory is a fleeting and abstract thing, I have tried to remain as true to the fact as possible, not adding any details for dramatic effect. The goal here is to merely relay my experience for those who have not had the chance to hear me tell it yet.

6 PM, Northeastern Arizona. I was 9 hours into my trip to Canyon de Chelly (pron. 'shay') and half an hour from the hotel where I was to stay for a week and film the canyon and ancient Native American ruins for my employer, Finley Holiday Films. My rental SUV was loaded with my camera equipment and supplies for the trip. I had hoped to reach my destination before it got dark, but unfortunately because of daylight savings, the shorter November days, and the time zone change, the sun had gone down half an hour ago and the last rays of light had just disappeared behind the black hills.

Now it's rather difficult to fully explain my thought process as everything happened in the space of about 5 milliseconds, but I recall glimpsing in the corner of my eye the ghostly figure of a horse bolting across the road, illuminated only at the last split-second by the edge of my headlights, immediately followed by a snapping and smashing sound, and a waterfall of glass pouring over me. As soon as I had realized something had just hit me, I hit the brakes and pulled off to the side of the road. I was rather stunned, but the first thing I noticed was that a section of the windshield had wrapped itself back and was a few inches from my face, so I pushed it forward roughly back into place. In a shocking moment, suddenly all memories of what had just happened came flooding back into my head. I must have been going 60 MPH, actually 5 below the speed limit due to the darkness, but the horse had run out at full speed and collided with the front left side of the hood, it's head snapping forward and shattering the windshield before being thrown upwards by the curve of the vehicle's roof.

Sitting on the side of the road, I opened the door of the SUV with some difficulty as it had been dented in, and spit glass dust out of my mouth. As I did so, I noticed something dripping from my forehead. I was bleeding, and I hadn't even noticed. The coolness of realizing that this was what being in shock feels like was quickly replaced by the terror of not knowing how badly I was injured. I grabbed my duffel bag and snatched a t-shirt from inside and held it to my face and applied pressure to try and stop the bleeding. When the section of windshield in front of me had wrapped back upon itself, it had cut me on the left side of my face and right hand. Not to mention that the shower of glass beads had given me hundreds of tiny cuts all over my face. Fortunately the near-freezing night temperature of the high desert sped up the cauterizing process for my smaller cuts, leaving only the big ones to deal with.

At this point a family drove by and saw my condition, and told me they would drive up to the gas station nearby and call the police. Being in the middle of nowhere, it took 15 minutes for the fire department to arrive, followed shortly by an ambulance and the police. The fire department busied themselves with blocking off the road where the dead horse lay (I must have killed it instantly), and the paramedics took me into the ambulance and checked me out. No major injuries, miraculously, and other than my forehead, everything had stopped bleeding already.

So, despite the long story involved in getting home with no car (not totaled, but completely undrivable) and no cell phone reception, I realize that I was extremely fortunate that the horse had not gotten further out in the road, where a direct hit could have almost certainly been fatal for me, and I was most likely lucky that I didn't see the horse in time to try to avoid it, as a sudden swerve at that speed could have rolled the vehicle, or I could have driven into a ditch or something on the side of the road. The way the windshield had broken was in a way that I could have received serious damage to my eyes, but those had somehow remained safe as well. A kind Native American police officer drove me back to the hotel where I was going, and assured me that they had had problems with the family who owned the corral leaving gates open on their property, and that there would be no danger of them asking for compensation. Yeah, thanks. Still, that's good news, considering I wasn't technically in America at the time. The park I was going to was on a reservation and politically, the entire area is Navajo Nation.

So, after spending a night with no cell reception by myself in the middle of nowhere (the nearest town was an hour and a half away), I finally got home Friday around midnight (much thanks to the help of my employers for getting me another rental car), and was at last able to relax and rest, a much needed exercise as being in a car wreck is a very nerve-wracking experience. I never realized how much I enjoyed being around people I knew, friends of mine and familiar faces have never been so comforting. I am also anticipating even more my return home for Thanksgiving to see my family and relatives. It's not that I've taken them for granted until now or anything, but I guess near-death experiences have a way of making you enjoy the good things in life even more than you did before. Funny how that works, isn't it?

A Quote and a Story

2008-10-28T16:02:00.000-07:00

I've got nicotine stains on my fingers
I've got a silver spoon on a chain
I've got a grand piano to prop up my mortal remains
I've got wild staring eyes
I've got a strong urge to fly
But I've got nowhere to fly to
. -Pink Floyd

There was a man who lived for years in agony because his memories felt more real than his present life. His impressions of the past were so immediate that to him his life seemed dull and murky in comparison. He slipped into depression because he spent his life wishing for those moments when he would pass into the other realm, recalling those impressions of his past life. Then one day he walked to the edge of a cliff, pondering the abyss before him. As he was about to slip silently into his memory, the ground crumbled and gave way beneath his feet. Suddenly he was falling, and the rock tumbled around him, plummeting with him a thousand feet toward the ground below. He was weightless, and the wind turned into colors and stung at his face. He could hear every piece of rock crumble as they broke apart in midair around him, his heart raced and his spine tingled as he sensed the sensation of complete freedom combined with sheer terror. At the same moment that he saw the ground rushing up at him, he realized that this was the most alive he had ever felt, more than any memory in his near or distant past. He shouted gleefully in the impossible energy that he felt, and then...

He woke up.

The 10th Kingdom

2008-10-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

"My name is Virginia, and I live on the edge of a forest. Well, sort of."

Alright. I recently re-watched the epic 7-hour miniseries "The 10th Kingdom", and I realized a few things about myself, and about the things that I love. But first, about the show:

"The 10th Kingdom" is about a girl named Virginia from New York who lives with her father in an apartment on the edge of Central Park, completely unaware that a magic mirror from a parallel world of fairy tales has opened up in the park. While Virginia is on her way to work, the portal opens up and she is greeted headlong by a number of characters from the other world. Through a series of unfortunate events, so to speak, she and her father end up in this fairytale world, but most unfortunately of all, it lands them right in the middle of the Snow White Memorial Prison.

This other world is essentially the world of Grimm's fairy tales, only 200 years have passed since the 'Golden Age' of Cinderella, Snow White, Red Riding Hood, etc, etc. Snow White's great grandson, Prince Wendell, has been turned into a dog so that his evil step-mother, the wicked witch, can destroy the 9 kingdoms of that land and declare herself queen. Virginia must discover her destiny and try to make it back safely to her home in the '10th kingdom' Along the way they meet a half-wolf played by the amazing Scott Cohen, Acorn the Dwarf played by my favorite little person, Warrick Davis, and a myriad of other fantastical characters.

It is a tale of epic proportions, but possibly the most amazing thing is that it maintains a humorous tone throughout, and strikes a perfect balance between dramatic character development and very funny and witty comedy. From magic mushrooms to tooth fairies to barbaric trolls to a town full of Little Bo Peep's descendents, and my personal favorite, the witch's Huntsman played by Rutger Hauer, the story has many twists and turns, and no matter where you stop it for a break, it always leaves you wanting to watch more.

But now that I've written my little review, I want to talk about what it means to me personally. I first watched this miniseries when I was in high-school. I borrowed it from a friend who had it on VHS because it looked intriguing, and as soon as I popped in the first tape, I was spellbound. But it wasn't till I recently re-watched it (my third complete viewing) that I realized it's impact on me. I usually cite George Lucas' masterful Star Wars films for inspiring me to want to create fun, enjoyable entertainment with psychological undertones and epic character development. But the 10th Kingdom, while slightly more jocular, accomplished this in a completely different world, yet in many ways, just as amazing as watching Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia, and just as magical (only now in the literal sense). As a movie maker, These type of movies are what I live for, and someday hope to create myself.

I could go on forever, but suffice to say I hold this miniseries in the highest regards, and recommend it for anyone interested in entertaining, brilliant and epic stories. I hope someday I get the chance to tell a story like the 10th Kingdom, and inspire others in the same way.

That is all.

"You're cold. You're cold, Virginia. How did you become so cold? You are still lost in the forest. But lonely, lost girls like us can rescue themselves. You are standing on the edge of greatness."

RANDOM PICTURE TIME

2008-10-23T00:38:00.000-07:00

A Poem for the 20th Century Man Stuck in the 21st Century

2008-10-17T11:06:00.000-07:00

When you're stuck in a hole
and you've no where to stay
and the light isn't on
to show you the way

when there's no more to try
and there's none left to kiss
on the road that's less traveled
there is no more than this

to be left all alone
with a pen in your hand
and the flag on the mailbox
has no place to stand

so it glides through the mirror
with a triumphant cry
and you beg to escape
from the screams and the sighs

but the bog keeps on lickin'
the rope keeps on slippin'
the mist is a-blowin'
the water is drippin

from the cup of your mind
too broken to fill
and if you cannot fill it
insanity will

so your consciousness slumps
and your eyesight implodes
into eight burrowed tunnels
where your confidence froze

so you drift into vapor
and sink into sand
where your breath disappears
in the palm of your hand.

If there's one thing to take away from life it's the socks they give out on airlines, because it's the one thing they won't ask for back.

by Kevin Christensen

I had a Pony, her name was Lucifer...

2008-10-12T16:00:00.000-07:00

I have decided to change the name of my blog.

Mainly I think this is because I despise stagnation, but I think a little of this may be a result of my scrambled brain due to my recent trip to Bryce Canyon (awesome as it was, It was still more than a little brain-scrambling). Indeed, I have only been back an hour, and I think the 9000 foot elevation change has really gone to my head.

But if one thing is clear, it's that I had a pony, and her name was Lucifer. So, without a moment's hesitation, I renamed my blog and have set forth with a resolution to post more frequently than before. Which shan't be difficult, admittedly.

This new blog will be more open for me to talk about whatever I want to, and thus create more chaos amongst all my two readers, and cause them to mubble and gander through the wabe. For that I apalogilolicize.

But I digress. As you may have guessed, the thing that's on my mind right now is a song called "New Pony" from Bob Dylan's 'Street Legal' album. It is a fantastically awesome rockin' tune and all two of you readers should check it out here immediately.

"She broke her leg and she needed shooting
I swear it hurt me more than it could ever have hurted her."

Mad as a hatter.

2008-10-04T09:54:00.000-07:00

A little something for the fans...

Quarterlife: A Slave to 2 Masters

2008-02-29T13:54:00.000-08:00

"Someone told me long ago theres a calm before the storm,
I know; its been comin' for some time.
When its over, so they say, it'll rain a sunny day,
I know; shinin' down like water.
I want to know,
Have you ever seen the rain coming down on a sunny day?"

-John Fogerty

Internet entertainment isn't going away. I'd wager that in less than five years no one will watch television any more, at least not as we know it now. Everything we watch, everything we do will be ported through our internet cables and delivered directly and instantaneously to our fingertips.

But right now no one seems to get it. Writers are afraid because they like the old way of telling stories and filmmakers are afraid because they don't understand the audience and studios are afraid because they don't know how to make money off of it, and they squirm at the idea of their shows being in the hands of 'internet hackers' and 'pirates.'

So light of all that, it is actually quite admirable for someone like Marshall Herskovitz, creator of "My So Called Life" and "Thirtysomething," two successful shows on network television, to leave the comfort of his old stomping grounds and blaze his own trail in the jungle of internet entertainment. It was called 'Quarterlife.' It was a show about 25 year-olds trying to figure out their lives after college.

Quarterlife was made with a television budget (albeit a small budget compared to other TV shows) and was made with the purpose of gathering an audience online, with the hopes of being picked up by a TV network. It did considerably well online, and sure enough, NBC decided to air in on primetime and 'give it a chance.'

Two days ago, it premieres on NBC, and when the ratings came in, it didn't just get poor ratings. it was the worst rated show in the last 10 YEARS. So, after one episode, the execs pulled the plug, and ushered the show over to Cable television. Looks like it internet and TV just don't mix.

That is, if anyone still believes in the Nielsen Rating System anymore... Basically if you aren't familiar with how TV ratings work, they take a 'representative sample' of 5,000 people and monitor what they watch to determine what is being watched on the other 99 million televisions in the country.

But let's look at what it's problems were. I think first of all, the show is structured like a soap opera. But unlike television soaps it only had 8 minutes to get you to care for the characters, and then it stopped again. Herskovitz' answer to this dilemma seemed to be to increase the emotional levels of all the characters to make up for lack of time. As a result, the characters are crying about their problems before you even care about them.

Then there's the whole video blogging aspect of the show. the main character has a video blog, but the show only used that blog cam perspective for less than a quarter of it's running time, so the web audience can never truly buy that they are real people actually blogging. Then bring this show to TV, and everyone who isn't an avid internet user (see: older age range) does not identify with what they are doing, and they just shut it off.

So it's alienation on both fronts. instead of spanning the gap, the show just seemed like it was made for neither audience. That combined with the fact that anyone who DID love the show had already seen it by the time it premiered on NBC, so they didn't watch it, depriving it of any hope of good ratings.

Let this be a lesson to anyone making entertainment: know your audience. Especially if you are creating something that is specific for your audience, you need to know who you are dealing with. Especially if you are going to produce content for the web. And pretty soon, the web will be the only place to get entertainment. There's a storm coming, are you ready for the rain?

Kevin

Beginnings

2008-02-28T17:46:00.000-08:00

I was listening to the radio on the way home from work today, and Billy Idol reminded me that it was a good day to start again. I have had a blog before, but I am not exactly the journaling type, so I found it hard to keep up, not having much to talk about.

But recently I have been getting into making entertainment for people around the world via the web, and I figured I really aught to follow Billy Idol's advice and write about what I've been dealing with and what I've been finding.

So this blog is what it says it is. Ruminations. I am in the process of finishing up my first serialized feature film, "Cataclysmo and the Time Boys," and in the very early stages of developing my next project, so I am at a stage of transition. I figure this can only be the best time to learn and study. Once I get the ball rolling on my next project, this will also be a place for thoughts on that as well.

2008 will likely be known in internet history as the year where all the major studios realize the potential opportunities on the internet and all try to make their own web content, or steal artists who have already proven themselves with successful content and slap their names on it. I hope to chronicle some of their exploits, and provide some thoughts about why their web series are succeeding or failing.

I am open to input from anyone, especially if this is something of interest to you, and I hope what you find here will be interesting. But I make no promises. If it's not, I guess it's always I nice day to... start again.

Kevin